The charity work that Tom Deierlein started in Iraq continues. Money donated to the Tom Deierlein Foundation is being used to purchase items in bulk for Iraqi children: clothes, shoes, vitamins, toys, soccer balls, school supplies, blankets and other provisions. The items are being shipped to designated U.S. Army soldiers who distribute them in the poorest areas of Baghdad. The charity also is helping to coordinate medical care for injured Iraqi children whenever possible. For more details, visit the foundation’s Web site.

Charity springs from many sources. For Tom Deierlein, an advertising executive called back to active Army duty after 12 years, it was born from his encounters with Baghdad’s poorest citizens. In this five-part series, we recount one man’s struggle to make a difference amid the chaos of war.